Sarah McBride Leads Delaware Congressional Poll and Would Be First Trans U.S. Representative

Sarah McBride appears to be well on track to become the first transgender member of Congress.

A recent poll of likely voters in the 2024 Democratic primary in Delaware shows 44 percent of respondents supporting McBride, who’s currently a Delaware state senator. Among her competitors, Eugene Young, currently director of the Delaware State Housing Authority, has 23 percent support; Colleen Davis, the state treasurer, has 13 percent; and 20 percent of respondents are undecided.

The poll was conducted September 7-12 by Change Research for the Human Rights Campaign Equality Votes PAC.

Delaware has one representative in the U.S. House, elected statewide. The seat is being vacated by Lisa Blunt Rochester, who’s running for U.S. Senate to replace Tom Carper, a fellow Democrat who’s retiring.

No Republican has entered the House race in heavily Democratic Delaware, so the winner of the Democratic primary will be mostly assured of a win in the general election. The primary will be held September 10 and the general election November 5.

McBride was national press secretary for HRC before being elected to the Delaware Senate in 2020, a win that made her the first out trans state senator in the nation. She was reelected in 2022.

She has emphasized that while trans representation is important and she’ll always advocate for LGBTQ+ equality, there’s more to her than that. “I’m running for Congress to be a voice that Delaware needs to make government work better for all families, especially when hard times hit,” she told The Advocate when she announced her candidacy in June. “I’ve spent my life advocating for my neighbors and delivering real results from policies like paid family and medical leave [and] historic investments to protect our children.”

McBride has been endorsed by the HRC PAC, LGBTQ+ Victory Fund, Equality PAC, and EMILY's List.

In a press release on the poll, HRC praised McBride’s advocacy for the family and medical leave law as well as gun safety legislation. The poll results showed health care and gun violence prevention to be the top issues among Delaware Democrats. Other priorities included protecting reproductive rights, fighting racism and discrimination, and addressing climate change.

“As this new poll reveals, Delaware voters overwhelmingly back Sarah McBride in her historic bid for Congress,” Geoff Wetrosky, HRC vice president of national campaigns, said in the release. “Her depth of understanding on the issues that matter most to the people of Delaware is built on a lifetime advocating for her neighbors and making real change. At a time when the LGBTQ+ community is in a state of emergency, representation in Congress remains essential. Sarah’s win would not only be historic, but deeply meaningful for transgender representation in the nation’s capital — sending a clear message that transgender people cannot and will not be erased.”